paula deen’s porkchops

photo courtesy of pauladeen.come

i have to admit something, i compulsively collect recipes (and patterns, but that is another day’s topic).  so, when i despair over my lack of dinner ideas, i have been trying to actually use some of these recipes i have bookmarked.  i had pork  chops, potatoes and onions in the fridge, so i decided to try out paula deen’s recipe for farmer’s pork chops.  my edits are in red type.

paula deen’s farmer’s pork chops

8 Smithfield Boneless Pork Chops, about 1/2 inch thick ( i only had 4, and they were more like 1/4″)
8 medium potatoes (i used two big potatoes)
1/2 medium onion
Salt and pepper to taste

Peel potatoes (i left my skins on); slice 1/4 inch thick and cover with cold water. Slice onion into very thin slices, and then cut the slices in half. Drain potatoes; layer half the potatoes in a well-greased 15×10 inch (i used my regular 13 x9 pyrex) casserole dish. Scatter half of the onion slices on top of potatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Repeat with remaining potatoes and onions.  Pour white sauce over potatoes and onions and bake on 350 uncovered for 15 minutes.

photo courtesy of amazon.com

i got this fancy mandoline from  my mom and i thought this would be the perfect recipe to use it on.  this came highly recommended from america’s test kitchen, and it works great and is affordable.  let me just give one warning though, the blade is EXTREMELY sharp.  the reason i had to borrow the pictures for this post is that i managed to slice the tip of my pinky off while slicing my potatoes.  i couldn’t hold the towel on my hand, and my camera, at the same time.

Paula Deen’s White Sauce

8 tablespoons (1 stick) of butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups milk (or half and half if you don’t have milk)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or chives (optional) (i used dried parsley)
1 to 2 teaspoons salt
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon pepper

i also added a little smoked gouda and a little baby swiss that i had lurking around in my fridge.

Melt butter; remove from heat. Stir in flour; add salt and pepper. Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is bubbly. Add milk, 1 cup at a time. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer 1 to 2 minutes, then let stand at least 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in parsley or chives, if desired.

Sprinkled seasoned salt on pork chops and dredge chops in flour mixture. Lightly brown chops in vegetable oil. Do not cook them completely. As chops are removed from frying pan, lay them on top of potatoes.  i skipped the flour dredging and just browned my chops in olive oil and garlic.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 50 to 60 minutes. The juices from the pork chops will drip down into the potatoes. Delicious!

it was very tasty, and we had lots of potatoes left over!  so i had mr p move them to a smaller casserole i am thinking  au gratin potatoes with dinner tonight!